Traces is a series of digital drawings, engraved with laser on paper, that begin with the eleven-month documentation of the changes registered in my fingerprints between 2016 and 2017. My fingerprints are ever changing because of a skin condition that wears off the characteristic curved lines that are associated with the image of an iconic fingerprint, making them hard to read by the standard biometric systems.

In the context of the era of identification and biometrics we currently live in, and with the thumbprint as the hallmark of identity, my ephemeral fingerprints refuse to be predictable. This situation has become evident during travel, particularly during the process of entering the United States as a permanent resident because the system is not programmed to read this kind of changing lines.

Interestingly enough, this is not an uncommon condition. It surprises me, that the most iconic and frequently used method of identification can be confused by a sensitive skin condition that is associated with manual labor in fields such as agriculture, construction, domestic work, among others.

This work was made using the laser cutter in the Makerspace of the Tompkins County Public Library